A move he first looked to make in the summer of 2024 would have to wait, though, until January 2026. West Ham finally allowed Paqueta to leave<\/a> after initially looking to keep him at the club for the second half of the Premier League campaign.<\/p>\n Our squad is set, but it\u2019s not perfect \u2013 and exactly who is to blame for that? <\/p>\n \ud83d\udc47 Join the debate; share your insight. Use the comment button on the bottom left to have your say <\/p>\n Thus, for a fee of around \u00a335 million, Paqueta became the third-most expensive sale<\/a> in West Ham United\u2019s<\/a> history. <\/p>\n This was not a transfer without a degree of sacrifice. Paqueta leaves Europe at the age of just 28, turning down the chance to stay in England with the likes of Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur.<\/p>\n According to TNT Sports Brazil<\/a>, the former Lyon and AC Milan ace also gave up \u00a3650,000 of his five-year contract at Flamengo in order to free up the funds the reigning Brazilian and Copa Libertadores champions needed to get a deal done.<\/p>\n Sign up for free here<\/a> to tell us how you felt about Paqueta\u2019s exit!Flamengo chief Jose Boto thanks Lucas Paqueta for forcing West Ham United exit<\/p>\n Sporting director Jose Boto, speaking at a press conference, accepts that this would have been an \u2018impossible\u2019 deal if not for Paqueta\u2019s willingness to take a substantial hit to the pocket.<\/p>\n \u201cWithout Paqueta, this transfer would not have been possible, no matter how much money we had,\u201d Boto says. \u201cWithout his desire, what he did to be here today, his staff who also helped a lot, it wouldn\u2019t have been possible.<\/p>\n \u201cThis shows how much he likes Flamengo, how much he wanted Flamengo. For this amount, there were ten to fifteen clubs in Europe that could have signed him!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt is a signing with a huge impact not only in Brazil but throughout Europe. But above all, there is the sporting aspect. We had two or three positions we wanted to strengthen, and he fulfilled all three. <\/p>\n \u201cThat was the sporting aspect that made us take this decision and move forward with the deal, knowing that we would be short for the rest of the market.\u201d<\/p>\n A mixed transfer window for the Hammers! \u2692\ufe0f <\/p>\n But what is your biggest January regret? What would you change if you could?<\/p>\n \ud83d\udc47 Join the debate; share your insight. Use the comment button on the bottom left to have your say <\/p>\n Paqueta says he really was injured at the London Stadium<\/p>\n The Rio-born 28-year-old is determined to put things right while ending a few narratives along the way.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/HN-40-819x1024.jpg\")
Credit: Getty Images\/Warren Little <\/p>\n![\"Lucas](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/GettyImages-2258859883-1024x683.jpg\")
Photo by Ton Molina\/Getty Images<\/p>\n